Brazil: Enawene Nawe blockade succeeds
15
2007-06-29T06:00:00+01:00
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The Brazilian government has agreed to several key demands of the <a href="../../../../../tribes/enawenenawe">Enawene Nawe</a> Indians after they blockaded a major highway. The government's Indian agency, FUNAI, will survey lands claimed by the Enawene Nawe and other tribes, with the aim of officially recognising the areas as indigenous.<br /><br />For three days in May, the Enawene Nawe, a small and remote Amazon tribe, erected barricades in Mato Grosso state to protest against plans to build a series of hydroelectric dams along the Juruena river. They were also demanding the official recognition of their vital fishing waters in the Rio Preto area, which are being rapidly destroyed by cattle ranchers.<br /><br />Neighbouring tribes joined the protest in support of the Enawene Nawe's demands, swelling the number of protestors to 200.<br /><br />The government responded quickly by dispatching officials to negotiate with the Indians on the barricade.<br /><br />It agreed to pay for representatives of various tribes in Mato Grosso to travel to Brasília to meet with the President of FUNAI.<br /><br />Despite the recent concessions, however, the dams still look set to go ahead.<br /><br />For previous news on the blockades go to: <a href="../../../../../news/2459">http://www.survival-international.org/news/2459</a><br />
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2007-06-29T06:00:00+01:00
The Brazilian government has agreed to several key demands of the Enawene Nawe Indians after they blockaded a major highway. The government's Indian agency, FUNAI, will survey lands claimed by the Enawene Nawe and other tribes, with the aim of officially
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Enawene Nawe blockade succeeds
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2007-06-29T11:29:35+01:00
India: 'Leave the Jarawa alone' tour operators told
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2007-06-29T06:00:00+01:00
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The authorities on the Andaman Islands have warned that offering sightings of the <a href="../../../../../tribes/jarawa">Jarawa</a> tribe to tourists is a violation of an Indian Supreme Court Order. The Order is aimed at protecting vulnerable tribes and any violation could invite contempt of court. The caution went out to hoteliers, tour operators, taxi drivers and others who have been known to organise such sightings, despite prohibition by the local administration. <br /><br />The Supreme Court Order states that the Jarawa, amongst other tribes, should be protected from any contact with mainstream society to minimise exposure to germs and disease. <br /><br />The Jarawa resisted contact with settlers on their islands until 1998. Now, they are under serious threat from outsiders invading their land. <br /><br />Survival’s director Stephen Corry said today, ‘ We welcome efforts to crack down on those who enter the Jarawa’s land without their permission. The Jarawa should not be treated as a tourist attraction – all interaction with outsiders is potentially lethal as it could introduce diseases to which the tribe have no immunity.’<br /><br />
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2007-06-29T06:00:00+01:00
The authorities on the Andaman Islands have warned that offering sightings of the Jarawa tribe to tourists is a violation of an Indian Supreme Court Order.
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'Leave the Jarawa alone' tour operators told
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2007-06-29T11:45:47+01:00
Safari concession threatens Hadza tribe
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2007-06-28T06:00:00+01:00
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Hundreds of Hadza hunter-gatherers face eviction from their ancestral lands if a foreign safari company is given a hunting concession on their land. <br /> <br /> Tanzania UAE Safari Ltd, which is reportedly backed by members of the United Arab Emirates royal families, is negotiating with the government of Tanzania for a concession of 3,975 sq kms in the Yaida Valley, where Hadzabe (‘Hadza people’) have lived for millenia.<br /> <br /> If the hunting concession is approved, the Hadzabe will lose access to crucial food sources such as game and wild tubers. They are likely to become destitute, with devastating consequences for their life expectancy and general wellbeing. <br /> <br /> Last month two Hadzabe activists were arrested when they attended a meeting with local officials to voice concerns over the deal and its impact on their tribe. They were later released.<br /> <br /> The Hadzabe are reported to be trying to seek a sustainable solution with all parties concerned, which respects the tribe’s land rights and way of life.<br /> <br /> The Hadzabe number between 1,500 and 2,000 people. They are one of Africa’s oldest tribes and speak a click language like the Bushmen. <br /> <br /> As they are hunter–gatherers, adequate land and natural resources are essential to their survival. Until the 1950s they survived entirely by hunting and gathering. Living in small mobile camps, they had no ‘chiefs’ or formal political organisation. <br /> <br /> Tanzania’s government has made repeated attempts to settle the Hadzabe in villages and get them to take up farming. Today, most Hadzabe people live in settlements, inside their distinctive grass huts, but they still move off into bush camps to find food. <br /> <br /> No Hadzabe farming has been successful, unsurprisingly, since the hot, dry climate is unsuitable for it. One Hadza elder told Survival, ‘No Hadzabe ever died of hunger when we had our land. But now that so much of our land has been taken and is still being taken, many Hadzabe are hungry.’<br /> <br />
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2007-06-28T06:00:00+01:00
Hundreds of Hadza hunter-gatherers face eviction from their ancestral lands if a foreign safari company is given a hunting concession on their land.
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Safari concession threatens Hadza tribe
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2007-06-28T12:29:41+01:00
Paraguay: Illegal deforestation destroys Ayoreo hunting grounds
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2007-06-27T06:00:00+01:00
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<br />A Paraguayan rancher illegally occupying part of the <a href="../../../../../tribes/ayoreo">Ayoreo</a>-Totobiegosode Indians' ancestral territory has destroyed key hunting grounds.<br /><br />A group of Indians were on a hunting expedition, searching for the large tortoises that form a key part of their diet in the dry season, when they saw two bulldozers clearing the forest. <br /><br />The deforestation occurred in the Totobiegosode's heartland, which they have been trying to recover since 1993. The area is protected by injunctions which prohibit any clearances until the Indians' land claim is resolved.<br /><br />In a brief confrontation, the Indians attempted to stop the bulldozers from operating, but Cesar Sosa, the rancher, threatened to have them arrested.<br /><br />The Totobiegosode immediately informed GAT, a Paraguayan NGO that has been working with them to protect their land since 1993. The following week representatives of the police, the Environment Ministry, the Attorney-General's office and the Forestry Department, accompanied by Totobiegosode leaders and observers from GAT and Survival, travelled to Sr. Sosa's ranch and impounded the bulldozers.<br /><br />Under Paraguayan law Sr. Sosa, being over 70 years of age, is immune from prosecution, but the bulldozers' owner, a powerful local businessman, faces a substantial fine.<br /><br />The Totobiegosode leaders hope that the authorities' action will deter other ranchers from clearing their forest. Several of them, however, have succeeded in getting the injunctions lifted on their ranches, and the whole area being claimed by the Totobiegosode is under severe pressure of deforestation. Many of the Indians' relatives still live uncontacted in the forest.<br />
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2007-06-27T06:00:00+01:00
A Paraguayan rancher illegally occupying part of the Ayoreo-Totobiegosode Indians' ancestral territory has destroyed key hunting grounds.
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Illegal deforestation destroys Ayoreo hunting grounds
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2007-06-27T12:58:23+01:00
Peru: Defence of uncontacted tribes is in 'public interest'
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2007-06-20T06:00:00+01:00
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The defence of <a href="../../../../../material/507">uncontacted tribes</a> has been declared in the ‘public interest’ by Peru’s regional Ucayali government. <br /><br />The statement is in a new law approved by the regional government intended to protect the tribes from outsiders invading their territories. The tribes, including the Mashco-Piro, Murunahua and Isconahua, are threatened with extinction by oil exploration and illegal logging. <br /><br />The tribes are especially vulnerable because of their lack of immunity to outsiders’ diseases. After being contacted for the first time by illegal loggers in the mid-1990s, more than 50% of the Murunahua died. <br /><br />‘The disease came when the loggers made contact with us,’ Jorge, one of the Murunahua survivors, told Survival. ‘As a result, half of us died. My aunt died, my nephew died. Half of my people died. The elders especially. When they came out of the deep parts of the jungle, they had no resistance to the disease.’<br /><br />The new law orders the creation of a ‘Defence, Protection and Contingency Plan’ to protect the tribes.<br /><br />Survival International’s Director, Stephen Corry, said today, ‘It’s good news the regional government has recognised the tribes’ existence and dire situation. What must happen now is for oil exploration to be stopped in these areas and for illegal loggers to be removed.’<br /><br />
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2007-06-20T06:00:00+01:00
The defence of uncontacted tribes has been declared in the ?public interest? by Peru?s regional Ucayali government.
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Defence of uncontacted tribes is in 'public interest'
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2007-08-30T18:08:23+01:00
Peru: Appeal to top human rights body on uncontacted tribes
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2007-06-15T06:00:00+01:00
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Peru’s national indigenous peoples’ organization has made an urgent appeal to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), Latin America’s top human rights body, out of concern for some of the world’s last uncontacted tribes.<br /><br />The tribes, including the Nanti and Machiguenga, are at huge risk from gas exploration taking place on their land, said a statement from the Interethnic Association for the Development of the Peruvian Jungle (AIDESEP). This has ‘led to forced contact between the gas company workers and the uncontacted tribes.’<br /><br />Located in Peru’s Camisea region, a reserve was created for the tribes in 1990 but gas exploration is still permitted there. There are reports of members of one uncontacted tribe being forcibly displaced from their homes and the use of megaphones and a helicopter to make contact with others. <br /><br />The tribes are particularly vulnerable to any form of contact because of their lack of immunity to outsiders’ diseases. After being contacted for the first time in the 1980s following oil exploration on their land, more than 50% of the Nahua tribe died.<br /><br />AIDESEP is urging the IACHR to request the Peruvian government to take specific ‘precautionary measures’ to protect the uncontacted tribes’ ‘rights to life, personal integrity, property, good health and well-being.’ The IACHR’s response is expected imminently. <br /><br />AIDESEP’s appeal to the IACHR follows a similar move made by the Native Federation of the Madre de Dios River and its Tributaries (FENAMAD), the indigenous organization in Peru’s Madre de Dios region where other uncontacted tribes have had their land invaded by illegal loggers. In response, the IACHR requested the Peruvian government to ‘adopt the necessary measures to guarantee the lives and personal integrity of members of the Mashco-Piro, Yora and Amahuaca tribes living in voluntary isolation in the Madre de Dios department.’<br /><br />
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2007-06-15T06:00:00+01:00
Peru's national indigenous peoples' organization has lodged an urgent appeal to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), Latin America's top human rights body, out of concern for some of the world's last uncontacted tribes.
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Appeal to top human rights body on uncontacted tribes
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2007-06-15T18:56:18+01:00
Indonesia: UN concerned over torture of West Papuan Tribes
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2007-06-13T06:00:00+01:00
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The Special Representative of the UN Secretary General on the situation of human rights defenders has concluded her visit to Indonesia. <br /><br />Ms Hina Jilani said on June 12th that she is, ‘is deeply concerned’ by the testimonies revealing the extent of arbitrary detention, torture, harassment through surveillance and the restriction of movement of indigenous Papuans who speak out about human rights violations.<br /><br />Ms Jilani reports that the police and the military threaten to prosecute human rights defenders who investigate allegations of human rights abuses committed by the security forces. She was particularly disturbed that such defenders are then labelled as separatists in an effort to undermine their credibility. The Special Representative urges this to stop. <br /><br />The Special Representative said that she is also concerned that people working to protect land rights were frequently threatened by ‘private actors with powerful economic interest’, but are given no protection by the police.<br /><br />Ms Jilani will present her report on this mission to the United Nations Human Rights Council and will make detailed recommendations for the consideration of the Indonesian government. <br /><br />Survival welcomes her findings, which are consistent with our experience of working with human rights activists and tribal leaders in West Papua for the last 25 years. Many tribal people have been murdered, arrested and tortured for speaking out about military and police brutality. Survival continues to push for the government of Indonesia to recognise the rights of the tribal peoples of West Papua to the collective ownership of their land and for an end to human rights violations. <br /><br />
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2007-06-13T06:00:00+01:00
The Special Representative of the UN Secretary General on the situation of human rights defenders has concluded her visit to Indonesia.
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UN concerned over torture of West Papuan tribes
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2007-06-13T18:20:26+01:00
Brazil: Indians and NGOs unite to oppose to Xingu dams
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2007-06-05T06:00:00+01:00
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<p>Indigenous peoples and NGOs have met in the Amazon town of Altamira in Brazil to discuss their concerns about a series of hydroelectric dams planned for the Xingu river, one of the Amazon's main tributaries. <br /><br />The Indians and NGOs announced that they are planning a huge gathering, to ‘show the government of Brazil our indignation and our position against the large scale projects it is implementing, which are destroying Amazonia.’<br /><br />The statement from the meeting highlights how the dams will destroy peoples' livelihoods and ways of life: <br /><br />‘We are totally opposed to Belo Monte [one of the large dams] because the Xingu river is our life. The death of the river threatens our lives, our future, our people, and our children and grandchildren. Any interference with the Xingu will cause the extinction of game animals and fish and will profoundly affect our lands and our health. <br /><br />‘We indigenous peoples wish to live and to breathe the Xingu river. Its water is the source of life and we don't want to die. We will not give up on life and we will not abandon our struggle. Our war cries are surging in our throats to oppose the enemy.’<br /><br /><a href="../../../../../material/553">Read the statement in full</a></p><p><a href="../../../../../news/2401">Read more about the dams</a><br /><br /> <br /><br /></p>
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2007-06-05T06:00:00+01:00
Indigenous peoples and NGOs have met in the Amazon town of Altamira in Brazil to discuss their concerns about a series of hydroelectric dams planned for the Xingu river, one of the Amazon's main tributaries.
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Indians and NGOs unite to oppose to Xingu dams
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2007-06-05T11:55:58+01:00
Brazil: Remote Amazon tribe to travel to Brasília
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2007-06-04T06:00:00+01:00
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The remote <a href="../../../../../tribes/enawenenawe">Enawene Nawe</a> tribe have dismantled their <a href="../../../../../news/2456">three day blockade</a> of one of the main highways in Mato Grosso state and are set to travel to the Brazilian capital, Brasília, to meet government officials.<br /><br />The Indians mounted the blockade on 31 May to protest against plans to build a series of hydroelectric dams along the Juruena river, which they say will destroy their vital fishing grounds.<br /><br />According to local press reports, several neighbouring tribes joined the protest and about 100 Indians armed with bows and arrows effectively isolated the northwestern part of the state.<br /><br />A commission composed of government officials and the police negotiated with the Enawene Nawe who agreed to halt their blockade if they could meet with the president of FUNAI (the Brazilian government’s Indian affairs department) to raise their concerns.<br /><br />A delegation of Enawene Nawe set out today on the long journey to Brasília.<br /><br />
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2007-06-04T06:00:00+01:00
The remote Enawene Nawe tribe have dismantled their three day blockade of one of the main highways in Mato Grosso state and are set to travel to the Brazilian capital, Brasília, to meet government officials.
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Remote Amazon tribe to travel to Brasília
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2007-06-07T03:01:25+01:00
Italy: Bushman leader lobbies politicians
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2007-06-04T06:00:00+01:00
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<a href="../../../../../tribes/bushmen">Bushman</a> leader Roy Sesana will return to Botswana today from Italy, where he met with the Vice President of the Senate, the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and the former Minister of Culture.<br /><br />Sesana travelled to Italy from the UK on the second leg of his European tour, to seek support for his people’s ten-year struggle to return to their land.<br /><br />Sesana met with Mario Baccini, Vice President of the Senate, Patrizia Sentinelli, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and Vittorio Sgarbi, former Minister of Culture. He also addressed 400 students from the Liceo Beccaria in Milan, and more than 600 people at a concert.<br /><br />Patrizia Sentinelli said, ‘The Bushman case is a clear example of how much public opinion can do to defend human rights and keep them at the top of governments’ priority lists, despite profits and economic interests. I will do whatever I can to support the defence of tribal cultures and the struggle for indigenous rights.’<br /><br />In the UK, Sesana met with parliamentarians from the All Party Parliamentary Group on Tribal Peoples, and delivered a letter to Tony Blair asking the British government to stop endorsing the Botswana government’s eviction of the Bushmen.<br /><br />For further information contact Miriam Ross on (+44) (0)20 7687 8734 or email <a href="mailto:mr@survival-international.org">mr@survival-international.org</a><br /><br />
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2007-06-04T06:00:00+01:00
Bushman leader Roy Sesana will return to Botswana today from Italy, where he met with the Vice President of the Senate, the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and the former Minister of Culture.
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Bushman leader lobbies politicians
2458
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2007-06-07T03:07:02+01:00
Peru: Second oil company blocked over uncontacted tribes
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2007-06-04T06:00:00+01:00
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The Peruvian government has blocked oil exploration by US company Barrett Resources in the northern Amazon over concerns about <a href="../../../../../material/507">uncontacted tribes</a> living there. <br /><br />The news comes just days after a similar decision was made by the government about oil activity in a neighbouring part of the rainforest. <br /><br />Peru’s Energy Ministry has rejected Barrett’s environmental impact assessment (EIA) of plans to develop its oil discovery. One of the main reasons is that the EIA failed to take into account adequately the uncontacted tribes living in the area. <br /><br />Only a week earlier the Ministry rejected Spanish oil giant Repsol YPF’s EIA on similar grounds. Neither company can proceed any further before it gains the Ministry’s approval. <br /><br />There are an estimated 15 different uncontacted tribes in Peru and all are threatened with extinction from oil exploration and illegal logging. 70% of the Peruvian Amazon has now been opened to oil. <br /><br />Recently the chairman of Perupetro, the state oil company, caused outrage by questioning the tribes’ existence and then announcing plans to contact them. Because of their isolation, the tribes are extremely vulnerable to disease and any form of contact can be fatal.<br /><br />Survival’s director Stephen Corry said today, ‘Good news, but of course it’s only temporary. Now the Ministry needs to prohibit oil activity in areas inhabited by uncontacted tribes and companies should agree to keep out. International law recognises this land as the tribes’, and so should Barrett and Repsol.’<br /><br />For further information contact Miriam Ross on (+44) (0)20 7687 8734 or email <a href="mailto:mr@survival-international.org">mr@survival-international.org<br /></a><br />
1188490311
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2007-06-04T06:00:00+01:00
The Peruvian government has blocked oil exploration by US company Barrett Resources in the northern Amazon over concerns about uncontacted tribes living there.
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Second oil company blocked over uncontacted tribes
2457
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2007-08-30T18:11:51+01:00
Brazil: Amazon tribe block highway to stop dams
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2007-06-01T06:00:00+01:00
1180670400
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A remote Amazonian tribe are blockading a major highway in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso in protest at a series of hydroelectric dams that will destroy their vital fishing grounds. The <a href="../../../../../tribes/enawenenawe">Enawene Nawe</a> Indians set up their blockade yesterday morning.<br /><br />Companies led by the world’s largest soya producers, the Maggi family, are pushing for a vast complex of dams to be built along the Juruena river which flows through the tribe’s land. Europe buys half the soya exported from Mato Grosso.<br /><br />The Enawene Nawe, who eat no red meat, fear the fish they rely on will no longer be able to reach their spawning grounds. Some of the Indians have left their village for the first time to join the protest.<br /><br />The tribe, who number only 450, are also protesting over destruction of a crucial area of their land by cattle ranchers who are cutting down the forests and polluting the rivers with pesticides.<br /><br />The Enawene Nawe have said, ‘The dams will bring our death, as they will raise the uncontrollable anger of the spirits.’ <a href="../../../../../material/552">Read an open letter from the Enawene Nawe to the Brazilian government</a>.<br /><br />Local ranchers say they will apply for a court injunction to remove the Enawene Nawe blockade on highway MT-170.<br /><br />Survival’s director Stephen Corry said today, ‘This tiny, unique tribe knows that its very survival is threatened by deforestation and the planned dams. The Brazilian government must wake up to this fact and protect the Enawene Nawe’s land before it is too late.’<br /><br /><div align="center"> –ENDS–<br /></div><br />For further information contact Miriam Ross on (+44) (0)20 7687 8734 or email <a href="mailto:mr@survival-international.org">mr@survival-international.org<br /></a><br />
1181178203
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2007-06-01T06:00:00+01:00
A remote Amazonian tribe are blockading a major highway in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso in protest at a series of hydroelectric dams that will destroy their vital fishing grounds. The Enawene Nawe Indians set up their blockade yesterday morning.
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Amazon tribe block highway to stop hydroelectric dams
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2007-06-07T03:03:23+01:00